We know, and remind you almost every week, that tens of million of people aren’t filling prescriptions because of cost each year. Many of them, including the elderly, can’t because food must come first.

It’s my strongest hope that our work at PharmacyChecker helps Americans get the medication prescribed to them, but at a price that also allows them to sit down to a turkey dinner in a peaceful home to celebrate Thanksgiving this year.

Is it legal to order medications online? Yes. If you live in the U.S., you can legally order medications online for mail order, such as from Walgreens or CVS. Is it legal to order medications from an online pharmacy located in a foreign country – to personally import it? Technically, no; but people who import small quantities of prescription medication for their own use, according to the FDA, are not prosecuted for doing so. There are a lot of nuances and quirky details when it comes to laws and regulations that apply to online pharmacies. Some laws are there to protect your health and safety; others seem more bent on protecting the profits of big drug companies – and there’s a lot in between. It’s complicated.

As we settle in to our Thanksgiving dinners tomorrow, let’s not forget the many millions of Americans who cut back on groceries each year to pay for medication or simply go without. How prevalent is this travesty? According to Consumer Reports, 21% of American adults with a prescription benefit and 39% without a prescription benefit are cutting back on groceries each year.

According to Hunger in America 2014, 14% of Americans receive charitable food assistance each year – about 46.5 million people. Of those people, 66% had to choose between “paying for food and paying for medicine or medical care in the past year, with 31 percent reporting facing this tradeoff every month.” That’s about 31 million Americans choosing between food and medical care/medicine each year.

The Consumer Reports survey shows that millions of middle class Americans are suffering under the burden of high drug prices. The Hunger in America 2014 survey shows how dramatically the poor are affected.

There is poverty in other advanced economies as well but with much lower rates of people struggling to afford food and medicine. We can do better in America. We hope that PharmacyChecker.com helps alleviate the burden of prescription drug costs and prevents sickness and lives lost when people find medication they can afford by using our information.